Dean's impact on Sal's identity in On the Road In Part I, Chapter 3 of On the Road by Jack Kerouac, Sal arrives in Des Moines and checks into a cheap, dirty motel room. He sleeps all day and wakes up in time to watch the sunset. As he looks around the unfamiliar room, Sal realizes that he doesn't understand his own identity. Having lost his identity, he states: "I was halfway across America, on the dividing line between the East of my youth and the West of my future." He's lost his aunt's calming influence, and Dean and his associates aren't here to fuel his wild streak. The only clues to his identity lie in the strange motel room. This appeal to emotions provides the reader with personal suggestions to identify with. Many people are lost in the context of their life and do not understand what they have done or what the purpose of existence is. The way Kerouac relates his feelings to the dark and soothing atmosphere of the room gives the reader a clear idea of ​​what he is experiencing. This appeal to style causes the reader to ponder about his... middle of paper... of my life that you might call my life on the road." Sal needed Dean to have an identity. Indeed, as far as Dean was a driving force, ultimately Dean and Sal needed each other to balance the holes in their personalities. Bibliography Charters, Ann Kerouac: A Biography New York: A Warner Communications Company, 1973. Kerouac,. On the Road to the United States America: Penguin, 1976. Tytell, John Naked Angels: The Lives and Literature of the Beat Generation New York: McGraw-Hill, 1976.